S.C.I. (Volume I) - Case 2: Chapter 12

The Killer Training Camp 12: Fate 

The two returned to the garden, only to discover that Pang Yu, who had been standing there just a moment ago, was gone.

Exchanging a glance, Zhan Zhao shrugged. "He gave us the slip."

Bai Yutang chuckled foolishly; it seemed that in this cat's eyes, he was still the most important.

Zhan Zhao rolled his eyes at him.

Just then, Professor Wilson walked to the center of the garden with a wine glass in hand and spoke loudly, "I am delighted that all of you could come today. This experience has made me fully realize how important the heart is for a psychologist."

His humorous remark drew laughter from the guests present.

"Now! Let us have a toast! To our health!" Saying this, Wilson raised his glass.

Everyone else also raised their glasses and drank them down in one gulp.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang did not have glasses in their hands, so naturally, they didn't have to drink... and because of this, they witnessed something unusual.

They saw Dr. Wilson’s wife, that dignified lady named Laura, suddenly swaying as she walked quickly toward Wilson.

A cold light flashed.

Bai Yutang shouted, "Danger!"

Laura had already raised the knife in her hand...

The blade plunged straight into Wilson's abdomen. Bai Yutang’s shout of "Danger!" had caused Wilson to turn around, and because of this, the blow struck him in the front rather than the side.

Laura pulled the knife out violently and raised her hand to strike again.

By this time, Bai Yutang had already lunged forward, tackling her and pinning her wrists down; the knife fell to the ground.

However, the normally gentle and quiet Laura was now like a madwoman, struggling and trying to lung toward the knife on the ground.

Bai Yutang restrained her with force, feeling that the old woman’s strength was shockingly immense... something was wrong. He looked up and shouted at the security guards, who were standing by, stunned and at a loss: "What are you all standing there for? Come and help!"

The guards snapped out of their trance and hurriedly moved forward to pin down the frantically resisting Laura.

Zhan Zhao had already called an ambulance and the police.

Dr. Wilson was lying in a pool of blood, clutching his abdomen, but he remained conscious. He looked at his wife, who was screaming madly, with disbelief, and used his remaining strength to tell the guards: "Do not harm her..."

The ambulance and police cars arrived immediately. Wilson was sent to the hospital, and Laura was taken away by the police.

Bai Yutang patted the dust off himself and looked at Zhan Zhao, who had walked up to him.

"Cat, what do you think?"

Zhan Zhao’s brows were furrowed tightly. "It's too strange..."

"Indeed!" Bai Yutang nodded. "It’s as if she were possessed. I’ve never seen an old lady with that much strength."

"Possessed?" Zhan Zhao repeated, murmuring.

"She was like a different person!" Bai Yutang smoothed his clothes, then suddenly froze. "A different person?"

Zhan Zhao nodded, then scanned the surroundings before saying to Bai Yutang, "Pang Yu is missing."

Bai Yutang frowned; this was all too suspicious. Saying this, he took out his phone and dialed the S.C.I. number.

"Hello~~~" The call was answered immediately. Bai Yutang was slightly taken aback, only realizing then that it was Bai Chi who had picked up.

"Bai Chi, are you the only one in the office?"

"Mm... mm." Bai Chi looked around; Jiang Ping was slumped over his desk drooling, and Zhao Hu, who had been taking care of Qi Le all day, was also fast asleep on the office sofa.

"Get to the city hospital right now," Bai Yutang said concisely. "Wilson has been stabbed. Go there and wait; notify me the moment there is any news."

"Uh..." Bai Chi was about to say something, but Bai Yutang had already hung up.

Looking left and right, Jiang Ping and Zhao Hu were still snoring. Bai Chi scratched his head anxiously, grabbed his bag, and flew out the door.

Back in the office, Zhao Hu sat up while still snoring and looked at Jiang Ping, who also had a wide-awake expression. "Is it really okay for the little guy to go alone?"

Jiang Ping wiped away his drool. "Let him get some practice."

The villa garden was crowded with police, and the guests had all been somewhat shaken. Jon Jin sat slumped in a chair, staring blankly ahead.

Bai Yutang looked grim as he examined the scene. A police officer handed him a small handbag; it belonged to Laura.

Opening the handbag, Bai Yutang’s expression darkened even further. Zhan Zhao hurriedly leaned in and saw Bai Yutang pull a small medicine bottle from the bag, filled with half a bottle of colorful pills. Inside the bag was also a card, identical to the two found in the white envelope mailed to Dr. Wilson: a black card with red lettering and the image of a devil holding a scythe.

The killer had committed a crime right under their noses; Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang couldn't have been more frustrated.

"Send this for a chemical analysis." He handed the medicine bottle to the officer.

Didididdididi~~~~~~ The phone rang.

Bai Yutang answered.

"Hello? ...Brother..."

"Bai Chi? How is the Professor doing?" Bai Yutang asked, somewhat anxiously.

"He's... fine." Bai Chi said, "The wound isn't in a fatal spot..."

Bai Yutang breathed a long sigh of relief. Zhan Zhao, who had been anxiously watching his facial expressions from the side, also relaxed.

"Brother..." Bai Chi seemed to have more to say. "That Professor, while he was unconscious, he kept saying... 'Devil's Child'."

Bai Yutang frowned. "Devil's Child?"

"Mm..." Bai Chi nodded. "He didn't say anything else."

"Very good!" Bai Yutang said. "I have already sent officers to protect him. You go home and be careful."

"Okay."

Hanging up the phone, Bai Chi giggled and walked in a circle where he stood. His brother had just said "Very good"~~~~ His superman brother had praised him~~~

Happily running out of the hospital, he thought about it and decided to take the subway back; the taxi he took earlier was too expensive~~~

Panting, he ran to the subway station and caught the last train at the very last second.

Bai Chi sat on a seat, panting. He was so tired, yet he felt so exhilarated...

Today had to be the happiest day of his life so far. Leaning back on the seat, he thought about the happy events of the day: moved into the S.C.I. in the morning, where everyone was so kind and capable. In the afternoon, he listened to everyone analyze the case and even contributed. In the evening, he completed an independent mission successfully (even if it wasn't dangerous) and received praise from Bai Yutang. Finally, he even successfully caught the last train home!! It seemed Bai Chi’s life was about to change from this moment on!

After catching his breath for a while, he realized he was the only person in this carriage... No, there was someone else over there.

On a seat at the end of the carriage lay a person.

That person was wearing a white sweater and white pants; his black hair was somewhat long, and he lay curled up on the seat, unmoving.

Bai Chi chased away the thoughts about haunted subways that flashed through his mind instantly~~~ Pull yourself together!! I am a police officer!!

Summoning his courage, he walked over. He saw that the man was lying facing inward, his hair covering his face, making it impossible to see his features.

"Sir... Sir?" Bai Chi tapped him gently... no response.

"Hey, are you alright?" Bai Chi took a deep breath and tapped him again. Still no response??

Psyching himself up for the possibility that the face might not have features, or might look like Sadako, Bai Chi mustered his courage and sat the man up.

The long, jet-black hair parted slightly, revealing a face. Little Bai Chi patted his chest; it had features, and he didn't look like Sadako!! Thank goodness~~~~

He looked closely and was so startled he almost screamed: "So good-looking~~~~"

The man wasn't very young and was rather thin, with very pale skin... He said he wasn't young because of the two faint laugh lines extending to the corners of his mouth. How to put it? There was a bit of the vicissitudes of life, and a touch of sexiness to it, growing on this face... Bai Chi couldn't describe it; he just felt it was beautiful.

"Are you alright?" He shook him, but the man's head lolled to the side, lifeless.

A terrifying thought suddenly flashed through Bai Chi's mind: could he already be...

Trembling, he extended his index finger to check the man's breath. The moment his finger touched the man's lips... the man suddenly opened his mouth and bit down on Bai Chi's finger.

"Ya~~~~~~" Bai Chi was so scared every hair on his body stood on end. He stumbled back two steps and fell onto the floor.

The man opened his eyes, tilted his head, and looked at Bai Chi on the floor. Then, he clutched his stomach and collapsed to the side, his shoulders shaking with laughter.

His laughter made no sound at all; one could only tell he was extremely happy. He almost laughed until tears came out, and his long, phoenix-like eyes were brimming with moisture... The sight left Bai Chi, who was still sitting dumbly on the floor, feeling like a fool.

After laughing for a moment, the man sat up straight again to look at Bai Chi, blinked, and stuck out his tongue to lick his upper lip.

Bai Chi’s face turned bright red. He stood up indignantly. "So... so, you lied to me!!" He turned to leave, but was pulled back by the man.

"My stomach is so hungry~~~~" The man pulled Bai Chi closer, leaned in, and hugged his waist, nuzzling against him like a spoiled child. "My stomach hurts~~~~"

Bai Chi stood frozen in place, the man's voice echoing in his ears—so ethereal...

He was torn between laughing and crying as he looked at the person who was acting spoiled toward him, yet was clearly older than him. He looked so pitiful, as if he were truly hungry. Bai Chi helplessly sat down beside him, took a piece of chocolate out of his bag, and handed it over. "Eat... it."

The man looked at the chocolate, then at Bai Chi, tilted his head back, opened his mouth, and said, "Ah~~~~"

Bai Chi was stunned for a moment before he realized the man wanted him to feed him... Considering he was in a great mood today, Bai Chi peeled off the plastic wrapper and carefully placed the chocolate into the man's mouth.

After eating one piece, the man leaned against Bai Chi’s shoulder again and nuzzled him: "I want more."

"You... how did you know I... I still have some??" Bai Chi asked, looking at him strangely.

The man didn't answer, only leaning in closer: "I want more~~~~"

..................

Bai Chi stuffed all four Dove chocolates from his bag into the man's mouth. Only then did the man smack his lips and lean contentedly against Bai Chi's shoulder to rest.

"Why did you... why did you want to scare people earlier?" Bai Chi asked, somewhat puffed up with indignation.

The man ignored him, instead leaning in to sniff Bai Chi’s body before saying, "Hospital."

Bai Chi was startled. "You... how do you know I went to the hospital?"

The man turned his face away with a look of triumph.

Bai Chi suddenly became very interested in him. This person looked a bit crazy, but it also seemed like he wasn't crazy at all~~~

"My name is Bai Chi." He decided to try communicating with him.

The man turned his head to look at him and then bent over laughing again.

Bai Chi blushed. "It's... Bai Chi! Chi as in galloping!"

The man stopped laughing, looked at Bai Chi, and said, "Your surname is Bai?"

"Mm!" Bai Chi nodded. "How about you?"

The man leaned into his ear and said, "I won't tell you."

..................

Bai Chi decided he’d better not communicate with him after all!

"What is troubling you?" the man said, changing the subject. "You gave me food, so I will help you solve a difficult problem." He held up a finger and waved it. "Don't mention it."

Bai Chi looked at him blankly. He felt that the person before him was somewhat like Zhan Zhao, as if he could see through a person's heart, but the two were completely different in temperament.

"That... Devil's Child..." the words slipped out—the term that had troubled him the entire way. Bai Chi didn't know why, but he felt that the person before him might give him the answer. "Do you know about it?"

The man stared at Bai Chi for a moment and smiled. "If one cannot become the Child of God, one has no choice but to become the Child of the Devil." Then, he tapped Bai Chi's forehead with his finger significantly. "Because they possess something that humans do not."

Bai Chi stared blankly at the person before him. The subway slowed to a stop. The man stood up, ruffled Bai Chi's hair, and leaned into his ear. "Don't worry, you still have a choice." Having said that, he kissed the top of his hair. "See you next time."

By the time Bai Chi snapped out of it, the man had already walked out of the subway.

He jumped up to rush after him, but the doors closed at that exact moment. Pressed against the door, Bai Chi shouted at the man: "What is your name~~~~"

The train began to move forward. Bai Chi ran backward; he felt he was already very close to the answer, just one step away.

The man’s silhouette gradually faded into the distance. Before disappearing, he raised his hand, pressed his index finger to his lips, and smiled at Bai Chi...

It was almost midnight when Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao returned to the police station from Professor Wilson’s villa.

Just as they stepped out of the elevator, they were met by Zhao Hu rushing toward them.

"What are you doing?" Bai Yutang asked, looking at Zhao Hu, whose face looked excessively terrified.

"Ah! Boss, you're back, huh? I'm leaving!" Zhao Hu answered succinctly and rushed into the elevator.

"Where are you going?"

"To watch Qi Le." The elevator doors closed.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang exchanged a puzzled glance and continued inside.

The moment they pushed the door open, they understood.

Sitting in the S.C.I. office was Bai Jintang, his expression dark and gloomy.

The air pressure was so low~~~

The two walked in obediently and in unison. "Big Brother, why are you here?"

Bai Jintang looked up at them, then lowered his head to continue brewing his low air pressure.

Zhan Zhao looked toward Jiang Ping, who was hiding far away.

Jiang Ping pointed trembling fingers at the forensic lab next door.

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao nodded in realization and prepared to sneak away.

At that moment, the office door opened, and Gongsun walked in carrying a file folder.

Bai Yutang and Zhan Zhao were just about to greet him when they paused—Gongsun looked somewhat weak; no, he looked terrible.

His complexion was frighteningly pale, and he looked listless, as if he might collapse at any moment.

"Gongsun..." Zhan Zhao truly wanted to step forward and support him. How could this happen? What had happened??

Gongsun didn't acknowledge them; he handed the file to Bai Yutang and said, "Jia Zhengyan’s autopsy report, and the analysis of those drugs."

...！...

They were shocked. It was done so quickly?!

"Jia Zhengyan died of cyanide poisoning."

"Cyanide?" Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang were stunned. "Are you saying that those pills contained cyanide?"

Gongsun nodded and said, "The components of these colorful drugs vary. The ones in Jia Zhengyan's system were deadly cyanide; the ones Zhao Hu brought back were a mixture of narcotics and anesthetics, which can indeed relieve pain; the ones you had someone deliver earlier were a mixture containing King Powder and other highly efficient hallucinogens."

"Hallucinogens?" Bai Yutang frowned. "Drugs that can cause hallucinations?"

Gongsun nodded. "Very potent effects."

"That is to say, Jia Zhengyan was murdered, and Laura attacked Dr. Wilson because she had consumed cyanide." Zhan Zhao’s expression was grim.

"Any other discoveries?" Bai Yutang asked Gongsun.

"That's all for now." After saying this, Gongsun turned to leave, but suddenly swayed, instinctively clutching the desk next to him.

Bai Jintang, who had been watching his every move, jumped up, wanting to support him, but before his fingers could touch Gongsun’s arm, they were swiped away.

Zhan Zhao and Bai Yutang watched their actions from the side, somewhat at a loss.

Gongsun clutched the edge of the desk to alleviate the feeling of dizziness. Bai Jintang’s hand hung in mid-air, afraid to get closer, yet unwilling to withdraw.

Zhan Zhao stepped forward and supported Gongsun. "Let me help you go take a rest." Saying this, he supported Gongsun into his own office and had him lean back on the sofa.

Outside the door, Bai Jintang watched all of this quietly. Bai Yutang asked suddenly, "Brother, what happened to Gongsun?"

Seeing Bai Jintang remain silent, Bai Yutang thought for a moment, took a breath, and whispered, "Last night, surely you didn't force him..."

Bai Jintang looked up and glared at him, then sighed and said, "Help me send him back later. I won't be going over to his place for a while; tell him to stay home and behave." Having said this, he strode out.

Zhan Zhao walked out of the office and came to Bai Yutang’s side. "Big Brother left?"

He nodded: "How is Gongsun?"

"He has a fever. I wanted to take him to the hospital, but he refused."

Bai Yutang found it amusing. This cat was truly dense; how could he go to the hospital like that? "Go to the infirmary and get some anti-inflammatories and fever reducers."

"Mm." Zhan Zhao nodded and walked out.

Bai Yutang paced in place for a few rounds, then slowly walked into Zhan Zhao’s office, leaned against the desk, and looked at Gongsun, who was lying on the sofa.

Gongsun’s eyes were closed. Bai Yutang knew he wasn't asleep; he just didn't want to face him.

"Mm..." he scratched his head, seemingly organizing his words. "Um, I’ll disturb you for a few minutes, okay?"

Gongsun opened his eyes slowly. It was truly rare to see Bai Yutang at such a loss.

Sighing, Bai Yutang said, "I might not be able to explain things as clearly as that cat, but..." As he spoke, he rolled up his sleeve to show Gongsun. "Here."

Gongsun looked at Bai Yutang’s arm. There were a few marks slightly lighter in color than his skin, looking like they had been made by fingernails. He looked at him, puzzled.

"Big Brother had an incident when I was very young; you probably know that?"

Gongsun nodded.

Bai Yutang was thankful that Gongsun was being cooperative, and continued, "Later, it took him two years of treatment, and after he came back, he didn't remember anything, as if he were a different person."

"After he came back, he was often with me and the cat. I remember one time, I told him that the cat and I wanted to run away from home, and he trapped us, locking us in a room. He was afraid we would actually leave."

"This scar... when I was seven, I got into an argument with him and said I didn't want him as a brother anymore, and he wouldn't let me go, refusing to let go no matter what... In the end, my father had to forcibly pull his wrist until it dislocated to tear him off me. These scars were made because he refused to let go even when he was dying."

"Because being with him could put us in danger, the family sent him abroad... we didn't have contact again until we were adults." Bai Yutang seemed somewhat apologetic. "The cat and I actually both like him very much, it's just that when we were little, we were still somewhat afraid when we saw him."

"His relationship with the family was very bad." Bai Yutang said with a smile, "I heard he was some kind of big boss, gang leader, or Mafia member abroad? I'm not entirely sure; in any case, it was a line of work that didn't require human empathy, only for people to fear him."

"When I was in school, he came to visit us once. Fortunately, the cat is more observant; I heard he had been writing letters to Big Brother the whole time, updating him on how we were doing. To use his professional terminology, Big Brother suffers from 'a mental deficiency'." Bai Yutang laughed bitterly. "As long as he likes something, he expresses it in the most direct way. Perhaps he lost too much, so he is most afraid of losing. The more he likes something, the more afraid he becomes... He might use rather extreme methods to keep the person he likes."

Seeing Zhan Zhao walking out of the elevator with the medicine from a distance, Bai Yutang stood up and walked toward the office door. Turning back, he said to Gongsun, "I originally thought my brother wouldn't like anyone else anymore... Gongsun, you are the first person to dare throw a scalpel at him. Don't give up on him."

Zhan Zhao walked into the office and saw Bai Yutang walking out, his sleeve rolled up to his elbow. Seeing those familiar scars, Zhan Zhao smiled in understanding.

He poured a cup of hot water, walked inside, fed Gongsun the medicine, covered him with a blanket, and walked back out. Just as he reached the hallway, he was pulled hard.

"What are you doing?" Zhan Zhao glared at Bai Yutang, who was hugging him.

Bai Yutang smiled but said nothing, leaning down to kiss him. Between kisses, he asked: "Cat, if you were to leave, what would happen to me?"

Zhan Zhao was slightly stunned and ruffled his hair. "Stupid rat!!"

On the sofa, Gongsun buried his head in the furry blanket, lost in thought~~~~

On the outskirts of S City, in an abandoned factory, blood-curdling screams rang out.

A man lay on the concrete floor, pleading endlessly: "I'll talk~~~ I'll talk~~~"

He was a young man in his early twenties with dyed yellow hair. Most of the underground arms trade in S City was brokered by him. He shouted a name desperately, saying, "It's him! It's him who bought the guns!"

From the darkness, two identical figures emerged, saying somewhat mischievously: "We told you to speak nicely earlier, didn't we? Honestly~~~ all that suffering was for nothing~~~"

Following this, the twins raised their heads and spoke to the person who had been hiding in a corner of the factory for a long time: "Did you hear that? Officer!?"

That person was startled, sweat beading on his palms from nervousness.

The twins walked out laughing, saying, "This name should be quite useful to you, right?"

Until their silhouettes disappeared into the darkness and everything returned to silence, for a very, very long time... that person sat slumped on the floor, covered in a cold sweat.

Struggling, he took out his phone and dialed a number.

"Hello? Is that Xu Qing?"

"Right, this is Han Zhang. You asked me to look into the source of the guns last time; I’ve found it. The person behind it is—Jon Jin."

......................

The Fury tore open her chest with her claws, beat her own heart, and shrieked.

I walked into a vast graveyard; the dense mounds of earth made the surface uneven. The coffins were all open, flames burning within, giving off sounds of wailing.

Walking among the forest of tombstones, I thought, perhaps there are people I know, or people I once knew, who are currently suffering.

The colorful pills in his hand spilled, watching them jump and roll as if they had a life of their own, as if he were seeing those lives shackled by fate, struggling and tumbling.

"Why are you the only one who cannot obtain happiness? Why are you the only one who is lonely?”